An Eight-Year-Old Who Had Open-Heart Surgery Became the Youngest Girl to Ever Climb Mount Kilimanjaro

There’s an eight-year-old girl in Punta Gorda, Florida named Roxy Getter, who had open-heart surgery when she was a baby. But she survived it, and now she’s doing way better than anyone ever expected . . .

Last month, she got to go to Africa with her parents and her 10-year-old brother. They were planning to do a safari at first. But then they decided to do something a little more challenging . . . and climb MOUNT KILIMANJARO instead. All 19,341 feet of it.

Her parents checked with her doctors first, and she got the all clear. Her brother also has heart issues, but they said he was good to go too.

The ascent took four days. You can’t go too fast, because your body has to acclimate to the altitude. And when they made it to the top on day four, Roxy became the youngest girl who’s EVER DONE IT.

A 7-year-old boy from L.A. made it to the top in 2008. So he still holds the overall record. But we’re assuming he didn’t have a heart condition.

Roxy’s mom says they didn’t know if they’d actually go the whole way when they started. But once they got close, they all really wanted to get there. And Roxy says she’s proud of herself, because, quote, “It was really, really hard.” (AllTheMoms.com)

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